Sales for Sainsbury’s online home delivery service have increased by more than 40 per cent so far this year.

The supermarket chain’s interim figures released today show the web sales channel has 80,000 customer orders each week and is available to 83 per cent of UK households.

An additional 23 stores started running this year taking the total number of shops offering the service to 137.

The retailer plans to increase capacity in areas of high demand and aims to operate the service in 200 stores to by March 2010 with sales expected to more than double.

In response to customer demand the service has increased the number of Christmas delivery slots by 40 per cent.

Sainsbury’s also claims it is the first online grocery retailer to operate an electric zero emission vehicle.

By autumn 2008 the vans will be transporting 20 per cent of all online orders, the biggest UK conversion of its kind.